Kimi wa Boku No Ohimesama
by Sleeping Reverie
Summary: Rorona's shop is successful as ever, with customers on her doorstep and her name renowned for being the second most brilliant alchemist on the continent. Sterk wouldn't have it any other way. But that's the unfortunate part of life; sometimes too much of a good thing is ultimately bad. Rorona's talent can be used for more than just good.
1. To Battle with Esty

A/N: I managed to get Atelier Rorona this summer at Gamestop, and now I can't stop playing! Since I've gotten True Ending A (the generic ending with Sterk added), I figured it was time for me to try my hand at some fanfiction. And yes, it's going to be Sterk/Rorona. I know how hard it is to find fanfiction for this series, so I apologize for those who wanted another pairing or a gen fic. I know that feel, bro! Now, without delay—

Kimi wa Boku no Ohime-sama

He was close to making something halfway decent. Finally, he could chop carrots into even slices. He could cook meat without horribly charring it on the outside and _still_ have it bleeding from the inside. He could even make simple, plain pie. Not like Rorona could, of course. That girl had a special talent for making pies. But at least he could make it taste like, well, _pie_.

Being on a knight's salary helped in its own way too. He bought the best ingredients he could at Ms. Tiffani's shop and Iksel's café. In the beginning it was just a cole drainer; every dish he created ended up in the trash bin or scraps for the street cats. But now—_now_, he thought as he examined the wrapped lunchbox in his hands, Sterkenburg Cranache could make a decent meal that wasn't sandwiches.

Making a mental checklist of his daily completed tasks, he reported to Senior Esty's desk. As usual, his fellow officer was shifting through the paperwork for requests, deftly making notes as she scanned the pages one by one. She lifted her head and smiled.

"Hello, Sterk. Are you finished for the day?" Esty took a quick glance at the box in his hands and then back to his face. He frowned slightly (though to a stranger he might have looked the same. Smiling frequently never came naturally), and nodded.

"I'm going to Rorona's workshop now. I'll return again in the evening for night shift."

"Thank you for your hard work. Did you make dinner again for Rorona?"

He nodded. "I've managed to make a decent meal for once. With all the customers lining up in front of the door every day, she forgets to eat every once in a while. I'm hoping this might stir her appetite a bit."

Esty let out a small hum and shook her head. "That sounds like her. It's a miracle she hasn't starved to death." Again, she looked at the lunchbox and back to him. Perhaps this was the time to walk away.

"Say…" Was her reply, only giving him a knowing stare. He knew where this was going—a chess game of a conversation.

"What is it?" He took the bait. Sighing, Sterk placed the lunchbox on the desk and crossed his arms. Hopefully the stern glare he was sending would get his message across.

Esty pushed her short locks of hair behind her ear and pointed her pen in his direction. Her smile continued, proving his glare ineffective.

"You know, you've been going over to Rorona's an awful lot lately." She pried, slightly leaning across the desk. The statement jabbed at his irritation and his eyes narrowed a fraction.

"Astrid asked me to watch over her. It's obvious that I would be over at her place often. Besides, it's dangerous for girls to live alone." He retaliated. It seemed to phase her none.

"That may be true," Esty said as she laced her fingers together, supposedly in mild thought. "But Rorona is a lovely young lady now, isn't she? Wouldn't people be talking about how a gentleman such as yourself constantly visiting her home?"

Sterk scoffed. "I'm sure the townspeople have better things to do with their time than making ridiculous assumptions."

"I'm not so sure about that, especially the ladies in town. I hear them often talking about one thing or another while I'm shopping. She's awfully popular, you know."

"But it's not like I'm going over uninvited. It's Rorona's choice as to whose company she wants to have around." He replied, now thoroughly irritated. He wouldn't dare disrespect his senior officer, but she just had a certain way to get underneath his skin.

And today she was taking no prisoners. Esty placed her hands on the desk and firmly looked into his eyes. His instincts took this chance to warn him of immediate danger.

"Exactly, Sterk. She's turning 21 soon, which means she's _of legal age_ to—"

"If you'll _excuse me_, Senior Esty, it's getting rather late. I should be on my way." He interjected fiercely. Honestly, whatever statement she was going to make did not need to be uttered in public.

Esty retained her stare for a few seconds, and with a small exasperated sigh, straightened up and gave him a genuine smile. Their makeshift conversation of wits ended in another stalemate.

"If that's the case, then I shouldn't hold you up much longer. Here-don't forget this." She handed him the lunchbox. "Tell Rorona I said 'Hello'."

With that, Sterk curtly nodded and headed out through the castle doors.

A/n: What was Esty really going to say? "She's of legal age to make her own decisions."


	2. Hair Dyed Red

A/N: Here's chapter 2! I apologize for the long wait and short first chapter. Part of my posting such a short chapter was to ensure that I would continue the story. I'm notoriously bad at not finishing stories, so I may have irregular chapter length at times. Please bare with me! Thanks for the reviews as well!

Kimi wa Boku no Ohime-sama

Chapter 2

Stepping out onto the streets of the town, Sterk headed on his daily trek to Atelier Rorona. Thankfully the trip tended to be a short one, as Artisan's Way was close by. He turned down the cobblestone street and occasionally watched some of the townsfolk perform their own routines. One lady was retrieving her laundry from the balcony of her home. An elderly gentleman was playing chess outside with an old friend. It happened to be near the end of another sunny, peaceful afternoon in Arland. He glanced down at the lunchbox in his hands and let himself a small smile. It may be boring at times, but days like this one were nice when he wasn't being rushed on his duties.

As he passed by Sunrise Café, Sterk caught sight of a familiar pink cape and hat in front of the workshop's doorstep. Rorona Frixell spoke a few words to her last customers and waved goodbye as they headed down the street.

Sterk waved his hand in greeting as she looked in his direction.

"Sterk! Hi!" The alchemist exclaimed as she caught sight of him. Sterk could see her trademark smile even from such a distance.

"Good afternoon." He returned the greeting once he reached the storefront.

Rorona held the door open. "Please, come inside!"

Sterk smiled and placed his hand on the door above hers. Being so close to her, it was easy to see how small she was compared to him. Her delicate fingers were still against the door as she looked up at him with wide eyes. Rorona had beautiful eyes…

"After you." The knight quietly told her. Rorona jumped a little at the sound of his voice.

"R-right!" She stuttered. Her small cape fluttered as she quickly twirled around headed straight into the workshop. Sterk followed in after her.

"Please, take a seat!" The alchemist motioned to the couch near the door. Her cheeks were pink as she barely glanced at him. "Umm, I'll make us some tea. It won't take long, I promise!"

Without delay, Rorona rummaged through her container for the necessary ingredients. Her absent mumbling mixed in with the sounds of the creaking storage box, rendering her words inaudible. It was a common occurrence whenever she practiced alchemy, and normally she didn't even notice that she was doing it. It was no wonder people sometimes called her an airhead. No matter. It was a trait he found endearing. Sometimes.

He took this chance to sit on the couch. The tiny workshop certainly had grown in the past few years. Potions and trinkets of all sorts had taken up space on the windowsills and shelves. The bookcase remained crammed full of recipe books for both common and rare items. Random ingredients had been scattered throughout the place, probably as a result of Rorona's requests from the townspeople. Senior Esty was indeed correct when she said the Rorona was popular. If it weren't for that homunculus, she most likely would pass out from exhaustion every week. Speaking of which…

"Where is Hom?" He asked. Rorona looked up from her cauldron in mild surprise.

"Huh? Oh, I sent Homhom to gather some ingredients for me. I needed some Dreamy Crowns and I couldn't just leave with all my other orders." Fetching two cups from the stone counter, Rorona ladled the beverage evenly between them and proceeded to join him on the couch.

"Here you go." She offered, and he gladly took the cup. "Hmm? Did you make something?"

"Ah, I made dinner." He lamely responded. Suddenly his nerves hit him like a sack of bricks.

"Really?!" Her eyes lit up as she set the teacup on the end table beside her. "What did you make?"

Sterk looked down at the lunchbox in his lap. "It not much, but I managed to cook some fried rice and chicken. I thought that you might be hungry, so I made extra just in case." He partially lied.

"Thank you so much, Sterk!" Rorona beamed at him as she clasped his free hand. Heat burned through his cheeks as he gently pulled his hand away from hers.

"It's nothing." He coughed. "Shall we eat?"

Rorona nodded as she grabbed some silverware from the desk drawer. Meanwhile, Sterk set his own tea aside and pulled the compartments of the box apart, revealing two steaming bowls of rice and chicken.

"It smells delicious." She complimented while returning to her seat. He handed her portion of dinner over, and she dove right in.

Boy did she know how to eat. Rorona shoveled the rice and chicken into her mouth like it was the first meal she had eaten in days. Heck, she probably didn't eat until now with her work. When was she going to learn that stopping for a break was a good thing? He was always worrying over—

"_Stherk?_" She waved her hand in front of his face and swallowed her food. "Are you going to eat that?"

Jerked out of his thoughts, Sterk immediately shoved his utensils in his food without so much as a blink. "Yes." He said curtly.

Rorona coughed a little and swallowed another bite. "Okay." She squeaked.

He had a penchant for killing the mood too, it seemed.

A few minutes of awkward silence passed as they finished their meals. Rorona, being the faster eater, gave a small contented sigh and proceeded to bring her bowl to the tiny sink.

"Shall I make dessert?"

"No need. I have night shift tonight, so it's best that I not get too full." He replied. Rorona's face puckered into a light scowl.

"A double shift? That sounds horrible." As soon as Sterk finished his last bite, Rorona stole the bowl and silverware in one swoop.

"It's not much different from what you do at times." He easily retorted. She knew it too, judging by the guilty look she acquired.

"I suppose that's true." Rorona surmised as she washed the dishes. "But it just seems boring, with all that pacing around the castle. Nothing really happens here—" She interrupted herself as he stared at her. "—Not that it's a bad thing of course!"

Of course it was true; in the duration of his employment at the castle, knight's duties have become more about community service more than anything. Tasks such as setting up and tearing down the annual festival, rescuing pets from trees, and making sure rowdy kids were behaving on the streets composed of most of his work day. Castle duty wasn't much better, especially with Gio running around like a rebellious teenager all the time.

"It can't be helped. One of our guards fell ill recently, and since..." He trailed off, thinking of what kind of schemes the king was thinking of in order to escape. "At any rate, someone has to take the shift, so I volunteered."

Rorona gave him a curious look, but shrugged it off. "Do you know what symptoms he has? Maybe I can make something?"

"The doctors said it was just a cold. There's no need to make anything."

She seemed to hesitate, holding his gaze for a small moment before relenting.

"If you say so." She stacked the containers together and handed it to him. "Please don't overwork yourself!"

"Speak for yourself." He smirked and her face reddened.

They continued chatting until the sun began to hide behind the horizon. The dusk rays pierced through the shop's window as Rorona peeked at the sunset with a small rueful smile. The rays dyed her hair a brilliant shade, and Sterk felt himself return the gesture.

"I guess you have to go back soon."

"Yeah."

And so ended another day. Rorona walked him to the door and stood on the steps as he headed back the way he came. He didn't mind peaceful days like this at all...

_8 hours later..._

Sterk gave an inaudible sigh as he walked through the castle's grand hall once more. The courtyard and the lobby was clear as usual. The extravagant tapestries and curtains gently waved from the draft coming from the air ducts. Moonlight filtered in from the windows, creating silhouettes on the floor. Sleep was fighting him, but he ignored the sensation by will alone. A cup of tea and his bed were sounding better to him every minute. Only two more hours until the next shift started.

He reached the doorway into the throne room where his fellow knight-in-arms Johnson stood watch. Johnson looked as much tired as he was, and only made it more obvious when he stifled a yawn.

"How are things here?" Sterk asked.

"Same as usual, sir. Even his Majesty is quiet tonight." Johnson joked as he rustled his dark hair. "Kind of makes me wish he would."

Sterk narrowed his eyes at the thought and Johnson threw his hand up in defense.

"Not that it would be a good thing, sir! Of course not!" The officer's voice rose and then hushed again. "Even with the rumors, I doubt anything will happen here."

Rumors? Sterk rose an eyebrow and crossed his arms.

"What rumors?"

Johnson blinked and looked to the side. "Ahh...there has been some rumors of an extremist group near the country's borders. We've sent surveillance out to check on the situation today, but no concrete evidence has been found yet. I'm surprised you don't know already."

"Has this been reported to the king?"

"Of course. He's the one who ordered surveillance in the first place. But without proper information, we are limited as to what we can do."  
How unsettling...normally Sterk was one of the first to hear of such news, but the information must have just arrived while he was at Atelier Rorona. Pricks of unease crept into the back of his mind as he dismissed the thought for tomorrow.

"Very well." With that, Sterk continued on his patrol.

The two hours passed by uneventfully, and eventually the tired knight crawled into bed without delay.

The sunlight hit his eyes as he awoke several hours later. His clothes were just barely folded and laying on the dresser, whereas his shoes were sprawled out on the small floor. It must have been around noon.

Yawning quietly, Sterk stretched and rose out of bed. Like clockwork, he searched the dresser for a new uniform and made his bed. Another day was waiting for him. Thankfully it was a day off, so another shift was unlikely to happen unless no one could replace Phinn.

He tided up the room and left for the kitchen. After a small lunch of soup and bread, he made plan to roam town today. Maybe he would stop by Iksel's cafe again for some flour and milk, go to the blacksmith for any new items, check and see if Rorona hasn't passed out anywhere, what else could he do? Unfortunately, the more he thought of it, the more it sounded like he was going on patrol again.

As he walked through the lobby, he noticed a familiar towns person conversing with Senior Esty. Esty's mouth was curved into a small frown as she spoke in hushed nervous tones. She caught sight of Sterk and motioned him over.

The townsgirl also turned to him with a nervous smile, and he couldn't help but wonder where he had seen her.

"Sterk," Esty started. "Do you know if Rorona's shop is supposed to be closed today?"

A mild trickle of worry rolled down his spine.

"No. As far as I'm aware of, Atelier Rorona should be open. What's the problem?"

"I'm supposed to pick up medicine for my grandmother." The girl squeaked. "I knocked on the door and no one answered. The door was locked too." It was then that Sterk recognized her as one of the customers that left Atelier Rorona yesterday.

Esty tapped her fingers on the desk in worry. "It's not like Rorona to forget this kind of thing. Do you think you could check on her while you're out?"

"She may have slept in." He assured the two women, knowing it was the most logical possibility. She did have a tendency to overwork herself.

"Don't worry. I'll stop by and see what's happened. "

"Thank you Sterk." Esty replied with a small sigh. She returned to speaking to the client as he left.

Sterk made short work of the trip over to Atelier Rorona only to discover that the door was indeed locked and the curtains were closed. He knocked on the oak door loud enough for even her to hear in slumber, but to no avail. After a few seconds, he put his ear to the door to listen to any sounds, but silence filled the air. What was that girl doing? Was she even home?

Biting the inside of his cheek, he decided to try the back door. It was rare that Rorona would go anywhere without telling anyone. Granted, her fighting skills had improved over the years, but she knew better than to try and venture outside the town by herself.

The noon sun was beating down on him as he made his way around the shop. He stood on the small steps and again knocked on the door.

"Rorona!" He called out, agitated. Suddenly the back door gave way to his knocks and flung open.

Now he was a little more than surprised as he hesitated to go inside uninvited. Still no sound came from the house.

"I'm coming in!" He announced.

That nervous feeling turned into full blown concern as he stepped into the shop. Books and papers were sprawled onto the floor in a haphazard mess. Vials were scattered everywhere, smashed with stale alchemical reactions leaking away. His boots crunched over the unavoidable mess as he took in the scene.

"Rorona!" He called again, unable to stifle the worry in his voice. Silence returned his call as he began to search for any clues. Astrid's room was still locked and appeared untouched while the couch was in a state of disarray, and worse, small specks of blood littered the room. Sterk knelt and sifted through the papers as sparks of rage ignited his head bit by bit. When did this happen, and what did they want with Rorona? She would never hurt anyone intentionally to warrant such actions. Was there some kind of emergency? Where did they go?

It was then that he spotted a piece of torn fabric near the cauldron, deep red in color and hidden beneath some parchment. He deftly reached for the clue and peered at the symbol embroidered in the middle. Rorona must have torn it off the offender during the scuffle.

As Sterk rose from the floor, he could feel the tension of the clenching the fabric in his hand and gritted his teeth in frustration. He had to go to the castle to report this, but despite his duty, he wanted more than ever to track down whoever took Rorona and show them why it wasn't a good idea to steal the Alchemist of Arland from him.

Sparing the room another thorough glance, Sterk quickly left the shop and headed back to the castle.


End file.
